Sure Thing • Gavi

Chapter 62: His Jersey

🎶 In This Shirt — The Irrepressibles 🎶

Author's Note:
This chapter will be heavy. TW: rape and extreme violence.

"Psst, Vicky" someone whispered and I weakly opened my eyes to see Pierre hovering above me.
"What is it?" I replied with a dry throat. I needed water. And food. But this wasn't a hotel.
"They've been lurking already, they will come and get you..." he said and looked at me with a pitying face.
"They'll come free us?" I asked incredulously.
"No, well, I don't know, I hope so, but what I meant was that *they* will get you" he replied and nodded his head in the direction of the door.
"What do you mean?" I asked confusedly.
"Vicky... They're men... and you're a woman... A very pretty one. That's what I mean..." he said quietly.
"No, no, no, no, no!" I said full of fear.
"Do you track your cycle?" he now asked and I nodded. "When was your last period?"
"I'm ovulating tomorrow" I whispered with a shaky voice.
"Listen, you need to buy yourself two days. I know this will be hard, but I guess they'll bring us something to eat soon. You need to throw it all up afterwards so that it seems that you're sick, then they won't want to come near you. It... won't be inevitable but you need to limit the chances of you ending up pregnant." he said and I broke out crying.

"Can you try now? I know your stomach is empty but I don't know when they will come for you" he said. I nodded and pushed a finger into my throat. A bit of luck seemed to be on my side because I managed to get some stuff out exactly in that moment, when someone came inside our cell with a food tray.
"Ugh... disgusting" he said in English and spit in front of my feet before leaving the food on the ground.
"Man, she's really sick... She needs some vitamins" Pierre said to that guy but he just slapped him across his face.
"Eat." he instructed us and walked out again.

The next two days went on like this, I was throwing up every two to three hours, but my body couldn't take it anymore. It was finally Friday, which meant that I had finished ovulating and Pierre left me his portions too as I had basically had had nothing in my stomach for the past days after always throwing everything up again. And that night, they came to get me the first time. I was scared as hell, crying and shaking as a man pushed me into a room in which more men were. They were playing cards or other games and seemed to have fun. And I was going to be part of that fun.

"Oooohhhh, the chica española" one howled and the ones who understood English laughed.
"Nice shirt" he said as he zipped down my hoodie, revealing Pablo's Spain jersey. I slapped his hands, but he just laughed and another guy was quick to pin both my arms behind my back, holding them. He pushed me to the floor and I groaned in pain. My body was still weak and when four men started plunging onto me, one pulling down my jeans, another pushing up my shirt and bra, I just had no power to defend myself. I shut my eyes, that were producing one tear after another, and waited for it to be over, it was horrible and humiliating.

My head turned to the side and I opened my eyes, looking at the other side of the room. And everything got so much worse when I saw Bruce, Joe's alleged friend from the CIA stand there. Our eyes met and he had a blank expression on his face as he was watching what was happening to me - and my head started spinning, which at least was somehow a distraction from what was happening to my body. What was he doing here?

The next day, they repeated that procedure two times. My body was sore and weak and I didn't know how long I was going to take it anymore. A week would soon be over and I didn't know what would happen if their conditions for my release weren't met. Would they be keeping me as a sex slave? Would they kill me? These weren't my only questions: Was Bruce the one who threw me under the bus? Whose side was he really on - was he infiltrated?

Sunday started off very badly. When I woke up, Pierre was gone. I hadn't heard anything at night, but I didn't see him the whole day. However, Bruce brought me food at lunch.
"How long have you been undercover?" I whispered, not specifying which side I meant.
"9 months. You were my missing puzzle piece" he said quietly and I looked at him with a confused face.
"Listen, I don't have much time, don't interrupt me. A targeted NATO operation will storm the compound tonight - this has been planned for months. We just needed Spain's approval as they held a veto against it. And when you came to me, I knew that I had gotten the leverage we needed on Spain. I'm sorry for what you've been through, but... it's for a greater good. If the operation is successful we'll have neutralised ISIS' biggest arsenal of weapons. There will be a lot of confusion, here is a spare key to the lock on the door, hide it. When you hear the commotion starting, get out and run. You need to get to the helicopter, everyone will be occupied with fighting, so weasel your way through. If something goes wrong: we're not far from the Jordanian border, it's about 15km south." he said quickly and my brain was trying to process all the information. He went on to explain astronomical constellations that would help me find the south and my head was spinning. Suddenly, there was some noise and he quickly stood up and walked out, slamming the door shut behind him.

I ate the food and laid down to gather some strength. I clutched the Spanish crest on Pablo's jersey, that I was still wearing. It was stained and ripped now, but it was the only thing keeping me sane. I had promised him that I would get back.
"I'm not giving up, Pablo. I will be back in your arms and never leave again" I whispered.
Time passed so slowly, but it was finally night and I needed my adrenaline to kick in. And then I heard it: helicopter blades swirling. Some shouting started and I heard shooting. I quickly took the key that I had hidden in a crack in the wall and opened up the door. I checked left and right and started running. I zipped up my hoodie and pulled down the hood.

Everyone was way too busy to notice me, the men were running around hastily, getting their guns and rifles. I needed to make it outside quickly and try not to get shot. Easier said than done, because when I finally got outside, shots were fired everywhere. I didn't know where to go, I started panicking. The helicopter, I needed to make it to the helicopter. But I stopped in my tracks when a grenade was thrown at it and it exploded into a million pieces, right in front of me. I put my hands in my hair and tore on it.
"NOOOOOOO" I cried out loud. I quickly diverted my eyes to the second helicopter, but I had to watch in shock as the soldiers were all hurrying back into it and it lifted off the ground. The operation had backfired.

"VICKY! RUN!" I heard a familiar voice and turned around to see a man pointing his gun at me. A shot was fired and I closed my eyes, but I felt nothing. I opened them again to see Bruce's lifeless body hit the ground in front of me. He had sacrificed himself for me. I stood there, completely shocked, but the adrenaline rush finally kicked in and I started running. There was so much commotion, which helped me in making my way through and I was praying to a guardian angel that I would make it out alive. I fell down, as the ground suddenly started shaking and I turned around to see the whole compound blow up.

But I quickly stood up again. I was on my own now, no one was going to save me. 15 kilometers to the border. With my strength now, I could maybe make it in two to three hours. I looked up at the sky and tried to remind myself of the stars that Bruce had explained to me for orientation and prayed that I wasn't running into nowhere. I ran, clutching the Spanish crest on Pablo's jersey.
"I'm coming back to you" I whispered and continued running.
My powers were vanishing, but after what seemed an eternity, I saw the lights behind a very high railing with wires.
"Jordan" I whispered.

That gave me a last rush of power and I continued running, getting closer and closer. I saw a gate and soldiers patrolling. When I was close enough to think that they could hear me, I started shouting for help, which caught their attention and they pointed huge torchlights at me.
"HELP!" I shouted while continuing to get closer and I put my hands in the air to signal that I had no weapons.
"STOP!" a soldier shouted and they were pointing their rifles at me now.
"HELP!" I shouted again and ignored his order, I wanted to get to Jordan.
"STOP NOW!" he shouted again and I fell on my knees, my hands still in the air. I was a few feet away from them now maybe.
"Help me. I am Vic-" I said but everything went black before I could finish my sentence.